Man arrested after chase in stolen pickup on Highway 6 Friday

None injured after hour-long pursuit

Colorado State Patrol arrested Kenneth Ivey, of Sulpher Springs, Texas, on Highway 6 south of Atwood Friday, after officers say he stole a truck and led them on an hour-long pursuit.

No one was injured and no property was damaged during the incident.

CSP Information Officer Nate Reid said officers received a call at 3:24 p.m. about a semi truck that had crashed in a ditch on the highway. The incident report added that the driver was showing “extremely erratic behavior.”

Ivey allegedly told officers the semi truck didn't belong to him, then ran once they approached him. He got into a silver flatbed truck "he didn't have permission to have" and fled westbound on Highway 6 through light traffic. Reid said the truck went “all over the place,” at one point driving into a cornfield and passing through Merino and Highway 71 at speeds between 30 and 45 mph. The truck also collided with a patrol car.

Reid said officers couldn't perform any tactical vehicle intervention because the truck was so big, so they deployed “Stop Sticks” – tire deflation devices – to incapacitate it. He didn't know how many officers or vehicles were involved in the pursuit, but said they called on all units (including those from the Department of Wildlife) to assist.

“If that (truck) got into a neighborhood, god forbid... we try to get as many people as we can,” Reid said. “Luckily it ended the right way.

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No one got hurt.”

Once officers contacted and arrested Ivey at 4:36 p.m., he showed signs of being under the influence of drugs and refused roadside maneuvers and a chemical test.

He was charged with first-degree aggravated motor vehicle theft, attempted second-degree assault on a peace officer, reckless endangerment, driving while under the influence, reckless driving and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Reid said the assault charge likely came from the truck-on-patrol-car collision, but couldn't confirm that the truck was stolen from his reports.